Obstructive coronary artery disease in patients hospitalized for severe sepsis or septic shock with concomitant acute myocardial infarction

PURPOSE

It is difficult to differentiate type 1 acute myocardial infarction (AMI) with obstructive coronary artery disease (OCAD) from type 2 AMI in patients admitted for severe sepsis. The aims of this study were to assess the risk factors and prognosis of OCAD in patients admitted to the intensive care unit for severe sepsis with concomitant AMI.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This is a single-center retrospective cohort study including all consecutive patients who were hospitalized for severe sepsis or septic shock between March 2006 and September 2014 and who underwent coronary angiography in the intensive care unit to identify AMI.

RESULTS

Overall, 78 (5.5%) of 1418 patients hospitalized for severe sepsis underwent coronary angiography to identify concomitant AMI. Thirty-two patients (41%) had OCAD. Following multivariate analysis, the risk factors of OCAD were peripheral vascular disease (odds ratio [OR] =5.7; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.1-30.4; P = .042) and at least 2 cardiovascular risk factors (OR = 6.7; 95% CI, 1.9-23.8; P = .003). Obstructive coronary artery disease was associated with a significant mortality increase at 60 days (OR = 8.1; 95% CI, 1.9-30.2; P = .004).

CONCLUSIONS

Obstructive coronary artery disease is a poor prognosis factor in patients hospitalized for severe sepsis with concomitant AMI. In this setting, medical treatment should be considered for patients with peripheral vascular disease or with at least 2 cardiovascular risk factors; the need to perform coronary angiography should be considered carefully.

COX-2 inhibitors and acute interstitial nephritis: case report and review of the literature

We report a case of biopsy-proven acute interstitial nephritis (AIN) in a 50-year-old diabetic woman, who had been treated with celecoxib for 4 weeks before presentation. She presented with clinical findings of renal proximal tubulopathy, aseptic leukocyturia and acute renal failure. A kidney biopsy specimen showed AIN with intense tubuli and eosinophilic infiltrate in the interstitium. She recovered normal renal function two weeks after cessation of celecoxib and use of a corticosteroid. A review of the literature yielded eight cases of COX-2 inhibitor-associated AIN with a biopsy-proven diagnosis. Among the reported cases, AIN was diagnosed after an average of 8.3 months of therapy (SD 12 months, range 3 days - 3 years) with 25 mg rofecoxib or 200 mg celecoxib daily. Common symptoms included asthenia, anorexia, nausea and vomiting. The classic triad of fever, rash and eosinophilia was uncommon. Typical laboratory features included hematuria, proteinuria, eosinophilia. Renal failure was common at the time of diagnosis. Mean serum creatinine levels were 0.86 +/- 0.11 mg/dl, 5.66 +/- 3.50 mg/dl and 1.15 +/- 0.24 before treatment, at time of diagnosis and 1 - 2 months after COX-2 inhibitor withdrawal, respectively. Three patients required emergency hemodialysis. After cessation of COX-2 inhibitor treatment, patients recovered completely with a normalized serum creatinine level after one to two months. Management consisted of withdrawal of the COX-2 inhibitor drug and in four patients, corticosteroid therapy was well-tolerated and may have been beneficial.